An MBA can be expensive; this year's Stanford tuition, for example, is more than $43,000. And getting an MBA will consume two years of your life, if you're in a full-time program.
Obviously, then, before spending your time and money applying to school, you should decide if you really want and need an MBA.
Who Should Get an MBA: People with a Plan Business school isn't for the clueless; it isn't meant to be a two-year placeholder in your middle or late 20s. Business schools look for people with a career plan that includes a legitimate need for an MBA-so even though it's okay to go to B-school without being sure what you want to do with your life, you should think about possible career goals, and whether attainment of them would be made easier with an MBA, before applying.
You won't be doing yourself any favors by going to B-school without direction or focus. If you haven't narrowed your focus at all, you'll probably be too swamped to do justice to career-direction decisions once school starts.
Who Should Get an MBA: People with Experience Business schools focus on enrolling students with at least some real-world experience; the average student at a top business school is in his or her middle or late 20s. Why? For one thing, schools feel that if you have some experience, you'll have a better idea of how business works and what you'd like to do with your life than if you're fresh out of college.
In addition, if you have experience in industry you'll have more to contribute to your peers. One of the drawing cards of business school is the opportunity to learn from your peers-but of course that's only possible when you and your peers have something to teach each other.
If you're a college student who's dead-set on going straight to business school, you shouldn't necessarily fret. But you need to know that, to get into a top school, you'll need significant business-related coursework, a compelling reason for getting your MBA now rather than later, and impressive internship or temporary work experience.
Who Should Get an MBA: Leaders and Would-Be Leaders The MBA is not essential for a leadership role in business—plenty of top executives got where they are by moving up through the ranks—but business school can be a great way station on the road to a leadership-oriented career.
By the time you graduate, you'll have spent thousands of hours in class or on group projects reading about, thinking about, and talking about a wide variety of businesses. As a result, you'll be better equipped than ever to make high-level business decisions.
And you'll probably spend some time studying "softer," people-focused coursework and projects, which will give you tools that will help you manage people in the pursuit of business goals.
Who Should Get an MBA: Career Changers In business school, you'll get a chance to think through a wide range of business problems in a wide range of industries. You'll gain the skills needed to perform a variety of specific job functions. Having an MBA can make you attractive to a range of employers no matter what industry you worked in before B-school.
Who Should Get an MBA: People in Industries that Require the MBA for Advancement In some industries and job functions very few people hired as college grads are promoted to more advanced positions.
On Wall Street, for example, people in sales and trading often can advance without a graduate education, but at most firms an MBA is necessary for advancing in a banking career. And the need for an MBA may be even greater in consulting.
Who Shouldn’t Get an MBA: People Who Want More Academic Focus than an MBA Offers Whatever unique MBA program you might attend, the MBA is still a general business-management degree, designed to train people in a variety of topics to help them run a business. Some people are more interested in learning deeply about a single business-related subject, such as accounting or economics. If you’re one of these people, you should seek out a specialized graduate-degree program in your subject of interest.
Who Shouldn’t Get an MBA: Some Entrepreneurs For some entrepreneurial types, the opportunity cost of going to B-school can be too great to justify taking two years away from work. Those with a great idea might blow the chance to be first to market with that idea; those already in entrepreneurial work situations can lose the opportunity to grow a business in the real world.
On the other hand, there are some good reasons for entrepreneurs to consider business school. You’ll get exposure to a wide range of business issues that should make you more equipped to run a business. You’ll learn about better ways of managing people. And if you’ve got a great idea but no capital with which to make your entrepreneurial dream a reality, business school can plug you into a network that can help you find funding.
Who Shouldn’t Get an MBA: Those without a Deep Desire for a Business Career Artists, writers, craftspeople, scientists—these and others like them rarely have reason to get an MBA. Of course, there are exceptions: for instance, the craftsperson who wants to start a business, the scientist who wants to work in management for a biotech company, the business journalist, and so on.
Career Objectives : You could talk about your career objectives and how the two year MBA programme will help you achieve them. This implies that you have a clear idea of what your career objectives are and how you wish to achieve them. For example, you may want to be an entrepreneur and wish to set up your independent enterprise after doing your MBA and then working for a few years in a professionally managed company. You could explain to the panel that the MBA programme will provide you with the necessary inputs to help you run your business enterprise better. But then you must be clear about what the inputs you will receive in the MBA programme are.
Value Addition : That brings us to the second area that your answer should touch upon. What is the value you will add to yourself during your two year study of management. Value addition will essentially be in two forms knowledge and skills. Knowledge of the various areas of management e.g. marketing, finance, systems, HRD etc. and skills of analysis and communication. You will find it useful to talk to a few people who are either doing their MBA or have already done it. They will be able to give you a more detailed idea of what they gained from their MBA.
Background : Remember, there must be no inconsistency between your proposed study of management and your past subject of study or your past work experience. If you have studied commerce in college then management is a natural course of higher studies. If you are an engineer this is a tricky area. You must never say that by pursuing a career in management you will be wasting your engineering degree. Try and say that the MBA course and your engineering degree will help you do your job better in the company that you will join. But then you should be able to justify how your engineering qualification will help.
Opportunities and Rewards : You could also at this stage mention the opportunities that are opening up in organizations for management graduates. Highlight with examples. At the end you may mention that while monetary rewards are not everything they are also important and MBAs do get paid well. You must not mention these reasons as your primary motivators even if that may be the case.
What to Expect ?
In general, B-school interviews are not formulaic. The focus can range from specific questions about your job responsibilities to broad discussions of life. Approach the interview as a conversation to be enjoyed, not as a question-and-answer ordeal to get through. You may talk more about your hobbies or recent cross-country trip. This doesn't mean that it won't feel like a job interview. It just means you're being sized up as a person and future professional in all your dimensions. Try to be your witty, charming, natural self. Interviews are conducted by students, faculty, admissions personnel and alumni. Don't dismiss students as the lightweights; they follow a tight script and report back to the committee. However, because they're inexperienced beyond the script, their interviews are most likely to be duds. You may have to work harder to get your points across.
How to Prepare ?
Prepare for the interview in several ways: Expect to discuss many things about yourself. Be ready to go into greater depth than you did in your essays (but don't assume the interviewer has read them). Put together two or three points about yourself that you want the interviewer to remember you by. Go in with examples, or even a portfolio of your work, to showcase your achievements. Practice speaking about your accomplishments without a lot of "I did this, I did that." Finally, be prepared to give a strong and convincing answer to the interviewer's inevitable question: "Why here?"
Self Awareness
1. How would you describe yourself ? 2. Tell me about yourself ? 3. How do you think a friend or professor who knows you would describe you? 4. What motivates you to put forth your best effort ? 5. How do you determine or evaluate success ? 6. What academic subjects did you like best ? Least ? 7. What led you to choose the career for which you are preparing ? 8. What personal characteristics are necessary for succeeding in the career that you are interested in ? 9. What is your philosophy of life ? 10. Why have you switched career fields ?
Weaknesses / Negatives
1. What major problems have you encountered and how have you dealt with them ? 2. What have you learnt form your mistakes ? 3. What do you consider to be your greatest weakness ? 4. Did you ever have problems with your supervisor ?
Skills / Abilities / Qualifications
1. What do you consider to be your greatest strength ? 2. Are you creative ? Give an example. 3. What qualifications do you have that makes you think you will be successful ? 4. In what way do you think you can make a contribution to society? 5. Why should we take you ? 6. What are your own special abilities ? 7. Why should we take you over another candidate ? 8. What is your managing style ? 9. Why do you want to join this institute ? 10. What do you know about our institute ?
Values
1. What is your attitude towards working hard ? 2. What part does your family play in your life ? 3. What are the most important rewards you expect in your career ? 4. What is more important to you : money offered, or the type of job ? 5. Do you enjoy independent research ? 6. In what kind of a work environment are you most comfortable ? 7. How would you describe the ideal job for you ? 8. What two or three things are most important to you in your job ? 9. Do you prefer working with others or all by yourself ? 10. How do you like to work ? 11. Under what conditions do you work best ? 12. What is the highest form of praise ?
Experience
1. In what part-time or summer job have you been most interested ? 2. Tell me about your experience. 3. What jobs have you held ? 4. How did your previous employer treat you ? 5. What have you learnt from some of the jobs that you have held ? 6. What jobs have you enjoyed most ? Least ? Why ? 7. What have you done that shows initiative and willingness to work ? 8. Describe your current job. 9. What did you like least about your last job ? 10. What did you like most about your last job ?
Goals / Objectives
1. What are your short-term and long-term goals and objectives ? 2. What specific goals other than those related to your occupation have you chosen for yourself for the next 10 years ? 3. What do you see yourself doing 5 years from now ? 4. What do you really want to do in life ? 5. How do you plan to achieve your career goals ?
Education
1. How has your education prepared you for a career ? 2. Describe your most rewarding college experience. 3. Why did you select your college or university ? 4. If you could, would you plan your academic study differently ? 5. Do you think grades are a good indication of your academic achievement ? 6. What have you learnt from participation in extracurricular activities ? 7. Do you have plans for continuing your studies ? 8. Why did you pick your programme ? 9. What courses did you like best and why ? 10. What courses did you like least and why ? 11. How has your college experience prepared you for this job ? 12. How did you pick your dissertation ? 13. Describe your dissertation process.
Salary
1. What do you expect to earn in 5 years ? 2. What did you earn in your last job ?
Interests
1. What are your outside interests ? 2. What do you do with your free time ? 3. What are your hobbies ? 4. What types of books do you read ? 5. How interested are you in sports ? 6. How did you spend your vacations in school ?
General
1. What qualities should a successful manager possess ? 2. Describe the relationship that should exist between a supervisor and a subordinate. 3. What 3 accomplishments have given you the greatest satisfaction ? 4. If you were taking a graduate for this institute, what qualities would you look for ? 5. What can I do for you ? 6. Tell me a story. 7. Define cooperation.
Stress Questions
1. What causes you to lose your temper ? 2. How often have you been absent from school, work or training ? 3. Have you ever had trouble with other people on the job ? 4. Can you take instructions without getting upset ? 5. Don't you feel you are a little to old/young for this job ? 6. How does your family like you being away on business trips ? 7. With your background, we believe that you are overqualified to join this institute. 8. You haven't had sufficient experience in this field. 9. Our experience with women on this job has not been good. 10. What would irritate you most if I as a manager did it ?
Influencing Others
1. Tell me about the time you were most persuasive in overcoming resistance to your ideas or point of view. 2. Tell me about the last time someone made an unreasonable request of you. 3. Describe the most disappointing and frustrating experience in gaining the support of others for an idea or proposal.
Interpersonal Skills
1. Describe a situation where it was most important for you to display tact and diplomacy. 2. Tell me about the last time you had a clash or disagreement with someone at school/college/workplace. 3. Tell me about a time when you felt most frustrated and disappointed at a person with whom you had worked.
Personal Adaptability
1. Tell me about the last time you were criticized by a supervisor or a professor. 2. Tell me about the time when you felt most pressured or stressed at work/ school/internship. 3. Tell me about the time when you felt most frustrated at your school/workplace. 4. In what aspects of your work/internship do you have the most confidence in your abilities.
Communication Skills
1. Tell me about the time when you felt best about your ability to draw out or solicit information from another person. 2. Tell me about the time when you had to work your hardest in order to fully understand what another person was saying to you. 3. Describe the last time when someone at school/work misunderstood what you were trying to communicate.
Motivation
1. Tell me about the most long term, sustained extra hours of effort that you put into your work/college/internship. 2. Describe a time when you felt most frustrated or discouraged in reaching your goals or objectives. 3. What do you feel has been your most significant work/school/internship related achievement within the past year or so ? 4. Describe the last time you did something well which went beyond the expectations in your work/internship.
Administrative Skills
1. Tell me how you go about organizing your work and scheduling your own time. 2. What do you do to ensure that your goals and objectives are met in a timely way ? 3. Describe the most extensive planning that you have ever done.
Problem Solving and Decision Making
1.Tell me about the most difficult problem that you faced in your work/school/internship ? 2.Tell me about the last time you made a decision that backfired. 3.Tell me about the time when you regretted most not getting advice before you went ahead ?
Conflict Management Skills
1. Tell me about the last significant crisis situation that you faced in your work. 2. Tell me about a time when you were most persuasive in overcoming resistance to your ideas. 3. Tell me about the time when you had a disagreement with someone at work.
Nobody believes the official spokesman... but everybody trusts an unidentified source.
1. The new chief executive officer of Citibank (India) is
a. Nanoo Pamnani
b. Dalbir Singh
c. Sanjay Nayar
d. P.V. Narasimhan
2.Camry — the best selling car in the US for the last four years is a car model that has been launched in India recently. This model belongs to the house of
a. Honda
b. Nissan
c. General Motors
d. Toyota
3. BPO expands to
a. Business Process Outsourcing
b. Business Promotion Outsourcing
c.Business Problems Outrearch
d.Bullion Processing Order
4. Boss is the name of the latest bike model from
a. Hero Honda
b. TVS
c. Kinetic Engineering
d. Kawasaki Bajaj
5. Drive smart is the name of a chip-based fleet credit card, targeted at the commercial fleet owners. This has been launched recently by
a. HDFC Bank
b. IDBI Bank
c. ICICI Bank
d. Global Trust Bank
6. Which of the following is the world’s largest express transportation company?
a. DHL
b. Elbee
c. FedEx
d. Blue Dart
7. The new revenue secretary is
a. Ajai Vikram Singh
b. S. Narayan
c. C. S. Rao
d. D. C. Gupta
8. The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) is headquartered at
a. New Delhi
b. Kolkata
c. Mumbai
d. Chennai
9. What percentage of the Indian population uses the Internet?
a. 0.8%
b. 1.6%
c. 3.1%
d. 5.7%
10. The President-elect of FICCI is
a. Tarun Dass
b. Arun Kumar
c. A. C. Muthiah
d. R. S. Lodha
11. Which of the following is a brand ofmatches?
a. Mahila
b. Lijjat
c. Wimco
d. Harpic
12. Which of the following cellular giants is the market leader in India in terms of handsets?
a. Samsung
b. Siemens
c. Motorola
d. Nokia
13. Blue-i and True-i are the names of mobile handsets from
a. Panasonic
b. Siemens
c. Motorola
d. Samsung
14. Which of the following is true about the targets of the Tenth Five-Year Plan?
a. Disinvestments target for the next five years is Rs. 78,000 cr.
b. Targeted GDP growth at 8% per annum.
c. To provide 50 million jobs per year.
d. All of the above are true
15. Thriving on Chaos is a book by one of the following management
gurus:
a. Peter Drucker
b. Tom Peters
c. C. K. Prahalad
d. Philip Kotler
16. Which of the following Indian cricketers is the brand ambassador of Standard Chartered, Kinetic Boss and SET MAX?
a. Rahul Dravid
b. Kapil Dev
c. Sachin Tendulkar
d. Saurav Ganguly
17. Which of the following is India’s largest foreign bank?
a. ABN Amro Bank Ltd.
b. Standard Chartered
c. Citibank
d. HSBC
18. The chief executive officer ofStandard Chartered bank (India
region) is
a. Anoop Tony Singh
b. Dalbir Singh
c. Naresh Gupta
d. Jaspal Bindra
19. Which of the following stores claims itself to be the man’s store with a British accent?
a. Shopper’s Stop
b. Ebony
c. Pall Mall
d. K-Mart
20. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s Managing Director is
a. K. Shridhar
b. E. Sreedharan
c. N. Murugappa
d. Sanjay V. Nair
21. Winner of the 2001 Nobel prize for Economics, Joseph Stiglitz is the author of
a. Globalization and its Discontents
b. The Innovater’s Dilemma
c. Leading Change
d. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make The Leap … and Others Don’t
22. This electronics player has entered the Indian market and has the punch line imaginative sight & sound. Identify it from the given options.
a. Bose
b. Onkyo
c. Altec Lansing
d. Kobin Mercury
23. Which of the following publication groups owns the relaunched version of Computer Today Smart Inc.?
a. The Hindu
b. Living Media Group
c. Rheja Group of Companies
d. Media Transasia
24. Apurva Purohit is the president of which of the following satellite
channels?
a. Star
b. Zee TV
c. Discovery
d. SET MAX
25. Vikrant Tyres belongs to
a. J. K. Industries
b. Apollo Tyres
c. MRF Tyres
d. RPG Enterprises
26. What is the rank of the State Bank of India in the list of the 100 big Asian banks published by the Asian Banker Journal recently?
a. 14th
b. 20th
c. 26th
d. 32nd
27. The Jumbo Group of Companies is owned by
a. Naina Lal Kidwai
b. Shikha Sharma
c. Vidya Chhabaria
d. Indira Nooyi
28. Which of the following represents the present bank rate?
a. 5%
b. 5.50%
c. 6%
d. 6.25%
29. At present the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) is
a. 4%
b. 4.75%
c. 5.50%
d. 5.75%
30. This company was in the news recently for being asked to pay 28 billion dollars in compensation to Betty Bullock who was on the verge of dying because she smoked its cigarettes since the age of 17. The company in question is
a. Rothmans
b. Phillip Morris
c.Benson & Hedges
d. Wills
31. The hallmark sign is given to
a. Cosmetic products
b. Eatables
c. Gold jewellery
d. Dairy products
32. The first Indian refinery to have successfully completed 100 years of its existence recently is
a. Hazira
b. Mathura
c. Digboi
d. Barauni
33. According to the Monetary and Credit Policy 2002-2003 released recently by RBI the GDP growth estimate has been scaled down to
a. 6%-6.5%
b. 6.5%-7.0%
c. 5.0%-5.5%
d. 4.5%-5%
34. The latest UNCTAD report has predicted a ___% drop in world Foreign Direct investment.
a. 15%
b. 21%
c. 26%
d. 29%
35. India launched the family
planning programme in which of the
following years?
a. 1948
b. 1952
c. 1956
d. 1960
36. The European Commission has recently allowed the entry of ___
nations in the year 2004.
a. 6
b. 8
c. 10
d. 11
37. The MacArthur Fellowhip for this year has been won by
a. Daniel Kahnman
b. Vernon L. Smith
c.Sendhil Mullianathan
d. Joseph Stiglitz
38. The Prime Minister of India recently inaugurated the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Centre for Excellence in Information and Communication Technology at which of the following places?
a. Rabat
b. Ulan Bator
c. Kuala Lumpur
d. Singapore
39. Which National Savings Scheme did the Government, with effect November 1, 2002, discontinue?
a. NSS 1990
b. NSS 1992
c. NSS 1994
d. NSS 1996
40. Which of the following personalities is the chairman of Asian paints?
a. M. M. Sharma
b. Nikhil Meswani
c. Ashwin Dani
d. Pradeep Mallick
41. Who has been appointed as the nextchairman of the twelfth Finance Commission?
a. Dr. C. Rangarajan
b. Dr. Rakesh Mohan
c. Vijay L. Kelkar
d. N. K. Singh
42. The Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) is now chaired by
a. M. A. Pathan
b. M. S. Ramachandran
c.Subir Raha
d. Y. H. Malegam
43. Which of the following Public Sector Enterprise (PSE) was in the news recently as its disinvestments was deferred till mid-January 2003?
a. SAIL
b. NALCO
c. NTPC
d. VSNL
44. Whisen is the name of a floor standing refrigerator that was launched recently by
a. Hitachi
b. LG
c. Daikin
d. Voltas
45. Kaizen is a Japanese term used in management. This word means
a. Error-free production
b. Restructuring the processes
c. Continuous improvement in work process
d. Weakening the weaknesses by strengthening the strengths
46. Which of the following countries is the largest tea producer in the world?
a. Sri Lanka
b. India
c. Brazil
d. China
47. This Swedish-Swiss conglomerate was in the news recently as there were rumours of it reaching the verge of bankruptcy and people had even started to call it the Enron of Europe. Identify the company from the given options.
a. Siemens
b. Vivendi
c. ABB
d. Daimler Chrysler
48. The present chief executive
officer of Idea Cellular issunil alagh
a. Anu Aga
b. T.V. Graham
c. Graham Burke
d. Naresh Gupta
49. Just relax is the punch line associated with which of the following garment brands?
a. Peter England
b. Classic Polo
c. Byford
d. Park Avenue
50. According to Business Today’s latest survey, which of the following is India’s most valuable private company, ranked on average market
capitalisation?
a. Wipro
b. Reliance Industries
c. Infosys
d. Hindustan Lever Ltd.
51. The top ranking Public Sector Undertaking, according to the Business Today’s latest survey is
a. Indian Oil Corporation
b. Oil & Natural Gas Corporation
c. State Bank of India
d. National Aluminum Company Ltd.
52. According to Business Today’s latest survey, the top ranking IT company on the basis of average market capitalisation is.
a. Wipro Technologies
b. Infosys Technologies
c. HCL Technologies
d. Polaris Software Lab Ltd.
53. According to the Business Today’s latest survey the top ranking pharmaceutical company is
a. Ranbaxy Laboratories
b. Cipla Healthcare Ltd.
c. Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories
d. GlaxoSmithKline Ltd.
54. According to Business Today’s latest survey, the top ranking automobile company is
a. Bajaj Auto Ltd.
b. TVS Motors Ltd.
c. Hero Honda Motors Ltd.
d. Telco
55. Which of the following personalities has recently been appointed as the chief executive of the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER)?
a. Omkar Goswami
b. Arvind Virmani
c. S. P. Gupta
d. Kishwar Ahluwalia
56. For the first time since 1994-95, the country has witnessed a decline in edible oil imports. What is that
decline in terms of percentages?
a. 5%
b. 8%
c. 10%
d. 12%
57. The amount donated by Mr. Bill Gates to India for AIDS Prevention in India on his recent trip to the country is
a. $50 million
b. $100 million
c. $200 million
d. $400 million
58. Who is the vice-president of NASSCOM?
a. Arun Jain
b. Sunil Mehta
c. Jerry Rao
d. N. Chandrasekharan
59. The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission is chaired by
a. A. K. Basu
b. S. D. Tendulker
c. K. L. Verma
d. N. K. Singh
60. Uptron, a leader in the electronics industry, in the pre-liberalisation era was a flagship brand of one of the following state governments:
a. Karnataka
b. Maharashtra
c. Uttar Pradesh
d. Kerala
61. As we associate Bombay House with the Tatas, with what would you associate Reliance Industries?
a. Power Chambers
b. Maker Chambers
c. Green Chambers
d. King Chambers
62. The prestigious National Institute of Design is based in
a. Hyderabad
b. Bangalore
c. Ahmedabad
d. New Delhi
63. The Global Competitiveness Report is published by the
a. IMF
b. World Bank
c. World Economic Forum
d. UNCTAD
64. Which of the following represents India’s position in the growth competitiveness rankings in the recently released Global Competitiveness Report 2002-2003?
a. 57
b. 48
c. 41
d. 33
65. Identify the first domestic two-wheeler company in the world to receive the Deming Award for achieving performance improvement through the application of Total Quality Management, from among the following:
a. Hero Honda Motors Ltd.
b. Bajaj Auto Ltd.
c. Kinetic Engineering Ltd.
d. TVS Motors Ltd.
66. According to the Global Competitive Report 2002-2003, the most competitive economy of the world is that of
a. Singapore
b. S. Korea
c. USA
d. Finland
67. The 50:50 joint venture between ___ and ___ was recently in the news for being called off. Fill in the blanks from the following:
a. Britannia & Danone Food
b. Wadia & Danone Food
c. Parle Agro Group & Wadia Group
d. Parle Agro Group & Britannia
68. An Indian Company has recently won the Deming Prize. What is the total number of Indian companies to receive this honour?
a. 3
b. 4
c. 5
d. 6
69. The TVS Motor Company incorporates one of the following animals in its logo:
a. Cheetah
b. Horse
c. Bull
d. Fox
70. Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance? is a book written by the chief of an IT’ Blue-chip Company. Identify the
author from the given options.
a. Larry J. Ellison
b. Louis Gerstner
c. Steve Ballmer
d. John T. Chambers
71. The country’s first-of-its-kind health insurance scheme for farmers scheduled launched on November 14
this year by Karnataka Government is called
a. Suraksha
b. Yashaswini
c. Sahayini
d. Kalyani
72. Which of the following Indian states was in the news recently as its first Venture Capital Fund was launched recently in the middle of November?
a. Madhya Pradesh
b. Uttar Pradesh
c. Rajasthan
d. Madhya Pradesh
73. Which two banks were in the news recently having signed an agreement to share their Automated Teller Machines (ATM’s)?
a. UTI & BNP
b. Corporation Bank & Oriental Bank of Commerce
c. HDFC Bank & ICICI Bank
d. Corporation Bank & UTI Bank
74. He is set to head the Security and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI’s) Committee on corporate governance. He was also in the news recently. Identify the personality from among the following:
a. N. R. Narayanamurthy
b. A. H. Premji
c. S. Ramadorai
d. Arun Kumar
75. One of the following is the chairman and managing director of the movie production company
Mukta Arts:
a. Shahrukh Khan
b. Subhash Ghai
c. Yash Chopra
d. Jitendra
76. World Money Card is the name of a pre-paid dollar card launched
by which of the following banks?
a. HSBC
b. Standard Chartered
c. Citibank
d. HDFC Bank
77. HCL has recently begged the British Telecom’s ITES related deal. Which of the following represents the worth of that deal?
a. $25 million
b. $50 million
c. $75 million
d. $100 million
78. You would associate Neville House with which of the following business groups in India?
a. Goenka
b. Wadia
c. Bajaj
d. Ambani
79. Which of the following represents the US based Indian/Indians who has/have been chosen in the list of 40 technology pioneers announced by the World Economic Forum recently?
a. Dev Gupta
b. Amish Mehta
c. Sanjay Parekh
d. All of them
80. The largest economy of the European Union is
a. Italy
b. France
c. Germany
d. U.K.
81. Whichis the largest carbonated soft drink market in the world?
a. USA
b. Mexico
c. Brazil
d. France
82. Who is the chairman and chief
executive officer of Star Group — one of the world’s largest media
companies?
a. Rupert Murdoch
b. John Murdoch
c. James Murdoch
d. Robin Murdoch
83. Stars ki pasand is a tagline that you would associate with
a. Vimal Suitings
b. Mayur Suitings
c. Raymond Suitings
d. S.Kumars Suitings
84. With you, all the time claims one of the following mutual funds. Identify it from the given options.
a. SBI mutual fund
b. LIC mutual fund
c. UTI mutual fund
d. Standard Chartered mutual
fund
85. The total outlay for the Tenth Plan period (2002-2007) is ___.
a. 1015843 crore
b. 1294549 crore
c. 1592300 crore
d. 1948512 crore
86. According to the Credit and Monetary Policy released by the RBI recently, the inflation rate will
remain at
a. 3%
b. 3.5%
c. 4%
d.4.5%
87. Vindhya is the name of the first rural agri-brand launched recently by which of the following state
governments?
a. Uttar Pradesh
b. Gujarat
c. Madhya Pradesh
d. Maharashtra
88. Which of the following represents the recent hike in Dearness Allowance (DA) that was also
approved by the Union cabinet?
a. 1%
b. 2%
c. 3%
d. 4%
89. Which of the following countries is the biggest producer of opium?
a. Syria
b. Afghanistan
c. Brazil
d. Portugal
90. Frank Morich, who was in the news recently as he is to be replaced by Rolf Classon, was the healthcare division chief of one of the following pharmaceutical giants:
a. Glaxo
b. Bayer
c. Pfizer
d. Novartis
91. India’s first paid news portal was in the news recently as it was about to shut down. Identify the portal from the given options.
a. indiatoday.com
b. newstoday.com
c. newspropertoday.com
d. indiainfoline.com
92. Recently RBI gave its nod to raise FII limit in Hindustan Lever Ltd. (HLL) to 49% from its present
limit of
a. 15%
b. 24%
c. 33%
d. 40%
93. Which of the following personalities is NOT a deputy governor ofthe Reserve Bank of India?
a. Vepa Kamesam
b. G. P. Muniappan
c. Rakesh Mohan
d. Y. V. Reddy
94. The latest annual meeting of the Asian Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) took place at the end of October 2002. Name its venue.
a. Mexico
b. Austria
c. Germany
d. Japan
95. Making Global Telecom Affordable in the punch line you would associate with
a. Satyam Infoway
b. Caltiger
c. NOW
d. Dishnet
96. First Break All the Rules is the
bestseller written by
a. Peter A. Topping
b. Macus Buckingham & Curt Coffman
c. Daryl Travis
d. Dr. Brian Weiss
97. Intelligent Investor is the name of a financial news magazine which was from the Rahejas-promoted Outlook stable. This magazine is
being rebranded as
a. Outlook Investor
b. Outlook Money
c. Outlook Investment
d. Smart Investment.
98. Buildurpc is the name of the latest pc model launched by ___.
a. Dell Computers
b. Microtek
c. Satyam Computers
d. Samsung
99. This Indian state was in the news recently as it has decided to open up its irrigation sector to private players due to an unprecedented financial crisis. Identify the state.
a. Maharashtra
b. Uttar Pradesh
c. Madhya Pradesh
d. Orissa
100. A newspaper is only as interesting as its readers is an ad line associated with which of the following newspapers?
a. The Economic Times
b. The Times of India
c. The Hindu
d.Hindustan Times
current AFFAIRS
1. Which celebrity has been named the sexist man alive in 2002 by People magazine?
a. Ben Affleck
b. Pierce Brosnan
c. Brad Pitt
d. Van Kinmer
2. Which member of the British royal family was convicted by the British jury and fined £500 for violating the Dangerous Dogs Act. The person is now the only member of British royalty to be convicted in modern times.
a. Prince Andrews
b. Prince Philips
c. Princess Anne
d. Prince Edward
3. How many countries of the ex-communist block joined NATO in late November this year?
a. Four
b. Five
c. Six
d. Seven
4. Haren Pandya — who fell out with Narendra Modi and who withdrew from the race for assembly elections - was, prior to his resignation, the
a. State industries minister
b. State home minister
c. State education minister
d. State rural affairs minister
5. In which city did the Dalai Lama recently inaugurate the world’s
highest Stupa?
a. Sarnath
b. Sanchi
c. Gaya
d. Dehra Dun
6 The Delhi Climate Declaration, adopted by 170 countries, is a ------ agenda.
a. 10-point
b. 14-point
c. 12-point
d. 13-point
7. Name the scientist who has won the prestigious Homi Bhabha Lifetime Achievement Award of the Indian Nuclear Society.
a. M.R. Srinivasan, former chairman, Atomic Energy Commission
b. S.C. Hiremath, chairman, Heavy Water Board
c. Dr C. Ganguly, chairman, Nuclear Fuel Complex
d. R.K. Sinha, associate director, BARC
8. Indian scientists have patented the medicinal properties of a certain fruit — used by Indians traditionally to lower sugar levels. Name the fruit.
a. Guava
b. Mango
c. Indian blackberry
d. Grapes
9. Which team won the Irani Trophy with a five-wicket victory in November this year?
a. Indian Airlines
b. Railways
c. Air India
d. State Bank of India
10. In the recent rankings released by the International Cricket Council, India secured 106 points and was ranked ------.
a. Third
b. Fourth
c. Fifth
d. Sixth
11. Who has been sworn in as the deputy chief minister of J&K?
a. Ghulam Nabi Azad
b. Mangat Ram Sharma
c. Muzzafar H. Beig
d. Ghulam Hassan Mir
12. Name the actor-turned-politician from Mandya, Karnataka, who resigned as Lok Sabha MP over the Cauvery issue.
a. Ambareesh
b. Jaya Prada
c. Venkatesh
d. None of these
13. Name the actor who was awarded the Kishore Kumar Award of the Madhya Pradesh Government for the year 2002-03 for excellence in acting and significant contribution to the film industry.
a. Amitabh Bachchan
b. Aamir Khan
c. Shahrukh Khan
d. Salman khan
14. Name the Indian-born author who has won the Kiriyama Prize, an award that is conferred for promoting an understanding of the Pacific Rim.
a. Shashi Tharoor
b. Rohinton Mistry
c. Salman Rushdie
d. Pankaj Mishra
14. Which slain person are the Hinduja brothers pointing fingers at for being an agent in the
Bofors deals?
a. Rajiv Gandhi
b. Olof Palme
c. Gen. K. Sundarji
d. None of these
16. Max Mirnyi, Mahesh Bhupathi’s doubles partner in the ATP Tennis Masters’ Series Final — a match that the duo lost — hails from
a. Poland
b. Romania
c. Belarus
d. Ukraine
17. The Sethusamundram Project aims to connect
a. India with Sri Lanka
b. Mainland India with Lakshadweep
c. The islands of Andaman and Nicobar
d. Mumbai with Karachi
18. Name the author who has won the Booker Prize this year for Life of Pi.
a. Yann Martel
b. Tom Robbins
c. Rohinton Mistry
d. None of these
19. Name the public figure selected for this year’s Sat Paul Mittal Award for outstanding services to humanity.
a. Amod Kanth
b. Kiran Bedi
c. Medha Patekar
d. Sunil Dutt
20.In which country did a newspaper comment that Prophet Mohammed would have liked to marry a Miss World Beauty Queen spark off riots, resulting in the death of 100 people?
a. Uganda
b. Nicaragua
c. Nigeria
d. Namibia
21. Which newspaper has been barred from advertising itself
as Delhi’s No 1?
a. Hindustan Times
b. The Times of India
c. The Indian Express
d. The Asian Age
22. C.S. Nayudu — brother of
legendary cricketer C.K. Nayudu — who died on November 23 was a cricket player of the erstwhile
a. Holkar Team
b. Gaekwad Team
c. Nizam’s Team
d. None of these
23. Name the cricketer who will
auction his cricket bats to help two cancer patients.
a. Sunil Gavaskar
b. Ravi Shastri
c. Saurav Ganguly
d. Sachin Tendulkar
24. Which pop star invited the ire of German authorities recently for
dangling his/her baby from the
fourth floor of a hotel in front of
hundreds of fans?
a. Madonna
b. Michael Jackson
c. Eric Clapton
d.None of these
25. Motir Moina (The Clay Bird), the once-banned film nominated for the Oscar is a film from
a. India
b. Bangladesh
c. Myanmar
d. Sri Lanka
26. Who has won the Demiurgus International Peace Prize awarded by the World Council of Foreign Ministers in Switzerland?
a. Jayaram Ramesh
b. Rudy Guiliani
c. Atal Behari Vajpayee
d. Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
27. Name the actor who plays Mangal Pandey in Ketan Mehta’s 1857-The Uprising.
a. Sunny Deol
b. Bobby Deol
c. Salman Khan
d. Aamir Khan
28. Name this year’s winner of the Grasim Mr International competition.
a. Anand Saluja
b. Rajat Raina
c. Jimmy Shergill
d. Raghu Mukherjee
29. In the terrorist attack on Jammu temples, which was the temple other than the Raghunath Temple that
was attacked?
a. Shivanand Temple
b. Rupiyowala Temple
c. Adinath Temple
d. None of these
30. From which constituency will Narendra Modi contest the assembly elections in Gujarat?
a. Ellisbridge
b. Viramgam
c. Maninagar
d. Bhiloda
31. Which country has banned the Barbie Doll?
a. Indonesia
b. Bangladesh
c. Egypt
d. Russia
32. Name the educational institution of the Capital that saw student protests following a daytime rape
a. Lady Hardinge Medical College
b. St Stephen’s College
c. Dayal Singh College
d. Maulana Azad Medical
College
33. In which district did Priyanka Gandhi take up the cause of Dalits, by calling for Shramdan?
a. Meerut
b. Amethi
c. Etawa
d. Kanpur
34. Name the artist who has been awarded the Kalashikhar Award for life-time achievement at the Aditya Vikram Birla Awards 2002 Ceremony in Mumbai.
a. Sankho Chaudhary
b. Jatin Das
c. Arzan Khambatta
d. None of these
35. Padma Shree Laloo Prasad Yadav is a movie being made by Mahesh Manjarekar, the director of
a. Lagaan
b. Tum Bin
c. Vaastav
d. None of these
36. Name the member of the British Royal family now facing criticism for allegedly calling Princess Diana a trollop and a harlot.
a. Queen Elizabeth II
b. Prince Charles
c. Phillips, Duke of Edinburgh
d. Prince Edward
37. In which city was the One-Day International between India and West Indies abandoned because of crowd disturbances in November?
a. Hyderabad
b. Vijaywada
c. Rajkot
d. Ahmedabad
38. Shweta Jaishankar, whom tennis star Mahesh Bhupathi married on November 24, is a
a. cricket player
b. theatre actress
c. student of management
d. model
39. Who has floated the new Justice Party?
a. Sharad Yadav
b. Sharad Pawar
c. Ram Vilas Paswan
d. Udit Raj
40. Which Indian film has bagged the best film award in the New Currents section at the Seventh Pusan International Film Festival?
a. Tiladaanam
b. Devdas
c. Mitr
d. Leela
41. Name the country that is going to the polls to elect its sixth president in six years.
a. Nicaragua
b. Bali
c. Ecuador
d. Fiji
42. Which city will now hold the Miss World Beauty pageant after the
original venue of Abuja city
was witness to riots?
a. Berlin
b. Bonn
c. Vienna
d. London
43. Name the leader who has
equated Pakistan and Saudi Arabia with Iraq.
a. Yasser Arafat
b. Atal Behari Vajpayee
c. Vladimir Putin
d. None of these
44. Eight obese children have sued a certain fast-food outlet for not issuing warnings of health risk. Name the fast-food outlet?
a. McDonalds
b. Nirulas
c. Pizza Hut
d. Wimpys
45. What cause did Bill Gates take up on his recent visit to India?
a. Education
b. Poverty eradication
c. Minority rights
d. AIDS awareness
46. Name the personality who has joined the Austrian election campaign, backing conservative chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel.
a. Madonna
b. Arnold Schwarzenegger
c. Halle Berry
d. Boris Becker
47. Name the longest serving senator in the US who retires on January 3 at the age of 100.
a. Strom Thurmond
b. Ernest Hollings
c. Jamie Morrings
d. Ted Gilbert
48. Which country has banned
knitting in the Parliament House after a minister was caught knitting during a debate?
a. India
b. Britain
c. Thailand
d. New Zealand
49. On November 25, in London, which theatre production completed 50 years of non-stop staging?
a. King Lear
b. The Mousetrap
c. Ten Little Niggers
d. Arms and the Man
50. Overlooking Lake Geneva in Switzerland, the residence of an
actor is being opened to the public as a museum. Whose house was it?
a. Clark Gable
b. Vivian Leigh
c. Charlie Chaplin
d. None of these
general knowledge
1. Which is the smallest planet of
our solar system?
a. Mercury
b. Venus
c. Pluto
d. Neptune
2. Granite, Basalt and Volcanic are the various types of ____ rocks.
a. Sedimentary
b. Metamorphic
c. Igneous
d. None of these
3. Rome is situated on the banks of the river
a. Seine
b. Danube
c. Tiber
d. Tyne
4. Identify the correct match.
Important LineDemarcating
a.Durand LineIndia &
Pakistan
b. McMahon LineIndia &
Afghanistan
c. Radcliffe LineIndia & Sri
Lanka
d. Siegfried LineGermany &
France
5. The Diego Garcia island is situated in the
a. Atlantic Ocean
b. Arctic Ocean
c. Indian Ocean
d. Pacific Ocean
6. The Russian Revolution took
place in
a. 1789
b. 1847
c. 1903
d. 1917
7. Member countries observe Commonwealth Day on
a. June, 5
b. May, 24
c. August, 7
d. October, 21
8. The Republic is a famous work by
a. Aristotle
b. Plato
c. Karl Marx
d. Otto Von Bismarck
9. Little Slam is a term associated with one of the following sport
disciplines:
a. Billiards
b. Bridge
c. Polo
d. Lawn Tennis
10. The study that deals with the process of fermentation is
a. Phenology
b. Zymology
c. Etymology
d. Phychology
11. The S.I. unit of temperature is
a. Celsius
b. Fahrenheit
c. Centigrade
d. Kelvin
12. When a ball bounces upon falling, which of the following principles is in action?
a. Newton’s Third Law of Motion
b. Newton’s Second Law of Motion
c. Newton’s First Law Of Motion
d. Hook’s Law
13. When ice melts in a container of water what happens to the level of water in the container?
a. It decreases
b. It increases
c. It first decreases then increases
d. It remains unaffected
14. Sodium metal is prepared by the electrolysis of sodium chloride by
using
a. Bosch’s Process
b. Frasch’s Process
c. Down’s process
d. Bayer’s process
15. How many bones are there in the skeletal system of an adult?
a. 109
b. 137
c. 188
d. 206
16. Which Veda consists of 1,028 hymns?
a. Atharva Veda
b. Sama Veda
c. Rig Veda
d. Yajur Veda
17. The first Battle of Panipat was fought between
a. Ibrahim Lodhi and Akbar
b. Akbar and Hemu
c. Ibrahim Lodhi and Babur
d. Akbar and Mohammad Ghori
18. Gandhiji’s famous Quit India call was given to the British Empire in
a. 1939
b.1941
c. 1942
d. 1945
19. How many judges are there in the Supreme Court of India besides the Chief Justice of India?
a. 20
b. 22
c. 25
d. 28
20. Which of the following Amendments made Sikkim part of the Indian Union?
a. 23rd Amendment, 1969
b. 28th Amendment, 1971
c. 36th Amendment, 1975
d. 42nd Amendment, 1976
21. The literary meaning of this writ issued by the court is to ‘command’. Which writ are we concerned with here?
a. Habeas Corpus
b. Mandamus
c. Certiorari
d. Quo Warranto
22. Ottum Thullal is a solo dance from one of the following states
of India:
a. Andhra Pradesh
b. Tamil Nadu
c. Kerala
d. Karnataka
23. The Ukai project is based on one of the following rivers:
a. Mahi
b. Krishna
c.Godavari
d. Tapti
24. The Sariska sanctuary is located in
a. Gujarat
b. Madhya Pradesh
c. Uttar Pradesh
d. Rajasthan
25. Indian Railways makes use of one of the following types of rail tracks:
a. Narrow Gauge
b. Broad Guage
c. Meter Guage
d. All of them
26. Young India is the newspaper first published and edited by
a. Mahatma Gandhi
b. Lala Lajpat Rai
c. Bal Gangadhar Tilak
d. Gopal Krishna Gokhale
27. The Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) is located at
a. Roorkee
b. Bangalore
c. New Delhi
d. Lucknow
28. Which of the following is the first month of our national calendar?
a. Vaishakh
b. Phalguna
c. Chaitra
d. Pausa
29. The Sepoy Mutiny or the Great Revolt of 1857 took place during the governor-generalship of
a. Lord Ripon
b. Lord Curzon
c. Lord Canning
d. Lord Minto
30. Unhappy India is written by
a. Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad
b. Dr. Rajendra Prasad
c. Lala Lajpat Rai
d. Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel
31.The capital of Chhattisgarh is
a. Raipur
b. Durg
c. Jabalpur
d. Indore
32. Which of the following is also known as the Venice of the East?
a. Manila
b. Tokyo
c. Bangkok
d. Singapore
33. Which of the following is the
highest capital city of the world?
a. Lhasa
b. La Paz
c. Thimphu
d. Beijing
34. World Human Rights Day is
observed on
a. November 21
b. December 1
c. December 4
d. December 10
35. Which of the following represents the permanent members of the Security Council of the U.N.?
a. 3
b. 5
c. 7
d. 10
36. Gambit is a term you would associate with one of the following sports disciplines?
a. Hockey
b. Badminton
c. Chess
d. Lawn Tennis
37. You would associate Dr. Ian Wilmut with the
a. discovery of the DNA structure
b. first kidney transplant
c. creation of the world’s first cloned
sheep
d. discovery of genes
38. The secretariat of SAARC is based in
a. Dhaka
b. New Delhi
c. Kuala Lumpur
d. Kathmandu
39. If the weight of a man is 120 kg on earth, how much will he weigh on the moon?
a. 10 kg
b. 20 kg
c. 40 kg
d. 60 kg
40. Europa is a satellite of one of the following planets:
a. Saturn
b. Earth
c. Venus
d. Jupiter
41.A money bill can originate
a. only in the Rajya Sabha
b. at the joint sitting of the Lok Sabha
and Rajya Sabha
c. only in the Lok Sabha
d. None of these
42. Directive Principles of state policy have been taken from the Constitution of one of the following countries:
a. U.K.
b. U.S.A.
c. France
d. Ireland
43. Which of the following is also known as the ‘coffee port of the world’?
a. Rio de Janeiro
b. Sao Paulo
c. Colombo
d. Brasilia
44. According to the latest Census 2001, which state has the highest
population growth?
a. Sikkim
b. Arunachal Pradesh
c. Nagaland
d. Manipur
45. The University Grants Commission was set up in
a. 1952
b. 1959
c. 1956
d. 1958
46. The Noble prize for one of the following fields was introduced in 1969:
a. Medicine
b. Physics
c. Chemistry
d. Economics
47. The World Trade Organization came into existence on
a. April 1, 1948
b. May 1, 1975
c. August 1, 1988
d. January 1, 1995
48. Amartya Sen won the Noble prize for Economics in
a. 1995
b. 1998
c. 1999
d. 2000
49. Flemish is a term used for the
inhabitants of
a. Hungary
b. Poland
c. Belgium
d. Austria
50. Who is the founder of the Slave Dynasty of India?
